How to Write & Draw Comics

Bonus Video: Choose Your Own Adventure

Time to make some tough choices!

As an artist you often have more ideas than you have the time and resources to complete. How do you decide what projects to do next? How do you make sure you’re not just mindlessly taking on all incoming work but stay true to your creative vision? Is strategy even a word in the artist dictionary? And what does a walk in the woods have to do with making comics? Watch the video to find out!

Let me know if this video helps you in any way or what method you use to decide what to work on. Do you even have a method or do you just follow your gut?

Hi Dave,
My rate varies a lot. In Denmark it’s usually a fixed amount/royalty for the whole book. In the US rates vary depending whether it’s a creator-owned book or straight up work for hire. I haven’t worked in the US industry enough to have a usual rate, but I think unless you’re a big name, they will tell you the rate and you will say yes or no. And no is my go-to answer 🙂 If you want to earn the big bucks, comics is NOT the place to do it.

Great job, Sir Palle! Here I am again. this is a helpful advice. You know you answered my problems. On this days, in my situation actually, it is hard to manage my time since I am studying and working on my story at the same time. This video will help not only me but also others to manage time, think of the consequences, and think about other people’s interests. you open my mind and my eyes every time I watch your videos.
i only have one question on how do you put yourself into your story I mean writers sometimes put themselves on the characters’ situations like they are the ones who are involve in the story? How do you come up with the point that your story is about to begin with the “achievement of the character’s goal”? Thanks for your reply…

I put myself in the characters shoes, for sure. I just let my mind wander, I guess. The great thing about writing, is 80% of it is thinking stuff through in your head. You can do that while commuting, doing the dishes or walking the dog. Hard to get any drawing done in those situation! The more you run scenes through in your head, the easier the actual writing process will be.

In terms of the character’s goal and planting that idea/image in the beginning, I tend to do that after the fact. My first focus is writing the story as I come up with it, then I look at it again and try to make it better/stronger in the editing. In the words of my friend Jeremy Barlow: “Because no one gets it right the first time, and the real magic happens when you’re editing or revising your work, so just get it out. You can’t fix something if it doesn’t exist.”